About

Keeping adults out of the hospital for preventable health conditions is at the heart of the mission of the Foundation for Better Health.

According to state and county statistics, from 2005 to 2009 adult Texans received $31.9 billion in charges for potentially preventable hospitalizations (PPH) with $160 million of those charges stemming from Tom Green County alone.

Foundation for Better Health:

The Foundation for Better Health, which consists of a partnership between the Area Agency on Aging of the Concho Valley, the ASU CareGiver Research Institute, Baptist Retirement Community, San Angelo Community Medical Center, Shannon Medical Center and Tom Green County Treasurer Dianna Spieker, was awarded $150,000 from the Texas Department of State Health Services to raise awareness on three medical conditions that severely affect hospitalizations in Tom Green County.

Those conditions include bacterial pneumonia, urinary tract infections and chronic obtrusive pulmonary disease. Reducing hospitalizations for these three conditions by 15 percent over an 18-month span is the goal of the partnership.

“These are health issues with simple solutions,” Mimi Baugh, MSN, RN, director of the ASU CareGiver Research Institute, said. “We are educating not only the adults affected by these illnesses, but their caregivers and the general public as well.”

Press:

Mission Statement:

The mission of the Foundation for Better Health is to strengthen regional health resources and fill gaps in care to empower the most vulnerable members of the community.

Dianna Spieker, Tom Green County TreasurerFoundation Coordinator

As an Daughter of an Air Force service member I am drawn to Public Service. Applying for a Contract with the State in the form of “Adult Preventable Hospitalizations” gave me the opportunity to bring financial resources into Tom Green County, while assisting not only the Indigent Population, but all Tom Green County Residents. The ultimate goal was to provide basic and easy to understand education on ways to reduce unnecessary hospitalizations. This education reduces the cost of Indigent Healthcare provided by the tax payers, and increases the quality of life for these patents. With the valuable input from our Founding Members a Coalition was created and the birth of “Foundation for Better Health” was born. I am honored to be a part of a community that strives to enrich and support one another; we still have the pioneer spirit of our forefathers.